Ask the Swan Specialist

Yes, these are the usual lies that the state and federal wildlife officials have been providing to the public so there will be no questions asked. However, the bottom line is that your state nor any other has ever conducted an environmental impact assessment regarding Mute Swans in the U.S. So, there is no justification for labeling them invasive, aggressive or detrimental to the environment.

If such an environmental impact assessment were conducted, wildlife entities would have absolutely no grounds for killing or even trying to control them which would mean less money to their budgets and income from your tax dollars for an admittedly non scientific based unsustainable program.

Current research and international swan and wetland habitat specialists stated that the Mute Swans are not detrimental to the environment or any other wildlife. In fact, they are no more aggressive than any other wildlife protecting their young. Additionally, Mute Swans are deemed an indicator species alerting scientists to problems in the environment. By killing them, you are in effect wiping out your early warning system.

The reason that your wildlife officials are killing the Mute Swans is to open up areas so they can introduce the larger Trumpeter Swans for Trophy Waterfowl hunting purposes. This is and has been a collaborative effort by state and federal wildlife officials for yesrs. Deceive the public so they buy into a killing program to remove one species with the ulterior motive to introduce another species that may never gave inhabited certain areas for hunting purposes. The larger Trumpeter Swans eat more vegetation than the Mute Swans, do not migrate and are already causing problems in Canada for their destruction of farm crops and other areas. Because they are temporarily protected, they cannot be controlled. So, the damage continues until their numbers are sufficient and then an open hunting season will begin, thus increasing the coffers of state wildlife entities.

These same wildlife officials will bemoan the non scientific based destruction by the Mute Swans while introducing very invasive species (based upon research) such as nonnative Asian Pheasants which displace native species including the Prairie Chicken in your area. Your wildlife officials are also stocking lakes with the European Brown Trout, one of the top 100 invasive species in the world. Yet, they have no concern for these truly invasive species because they can make money from hunting and fishing permits and introduce them on a yearly basis.

Find a true animal friendly state senator or assembly person and contact them regarding these issues. The wildlife entities cannot have it both ways, stating invasive for one species with no science and ignoring science to make money from truly science based invasive species. Follow our fight against the killing of Mute Swans on the Regal Swan Foundation's Facebook page. The Regal Swan